Prayer vigil to be held for girl struck by gunfire in her home

MILWAUKEE — A prayer vigil will be held Friday night for Averiona Hines, the 12-year-old girl recovering from gunshot wounds. Hines was wounded after being hit by a stray bullet Tuesday, June 19th while inside her home on Milwaukee’s west side.

Friends and family will be gathering at Averiona’s home (19th on N. 39th Street between Galena and Cherry Streets) Friday night, where the incident occurred, for a call to “stop the violence.”

Hines was struck by by gunfire while insider her home Tuesday. She is currently recovering from a wound to her right arm.

Officers were called to the scene just before 1 a.m. Tuesday after reports of gunshots fired into the duplex. Neighbors say one shot was fired into the lower part of the duplex and another struck the upper level where Hines lives. Those who were inside of the home immediately dropped to the floor.

Natisha Shelton, Averiona’s mother, was sitting on her porch when the chaos erupted.

“All of sudden it’s just a very loud gunshot that went off. It was so loud, we couldn’t even hear,” Sheltons aid.

Shelton immediately went upstairs to check on the children who were inside of the home. That’s when she discovered Averiona had been struck by the gunfire. She suffered a wound to her right arm. Averiona was rushed to Children’s Hospital with non-life threatening injuries. She’s expected to be released from the hospital by Wednesday, June 20th.

Shelton tells FOX6 News this is not the first time she’s heard gunshots in her neighborhood. She says it’s gotten out of hand and she’s now thinking about moving.

“It’s something I wouldn’t want anyone to go through, to see their child shot in their home — somewhere they should feel safe and comfortable,” Shelton said.

Neighbors say they don’t know where the gunshots came from, and they are very concerned. Milwaukee Police are still investigating the incident.